'Badminton Queen' An Se-young Becomes First Player to Surpass $3 Million in Career Prize Money

'World's best' badminton player An Se-young has reached a historic milestone, becoming the first player in badminton history to surpass $3 million (approximately 4.577 billion won) in career prize money.
The Badminton World Federation (BWF) announced on its official social media channels today (June 11) that An has become the first badminton athlete ever to achieve $3 million in cumulative prize money.
This figure, based on prize money from official BWF tournaments, is the highest amount ever recorded by any male or female player.
An, the world No. 1 in women's singles, is dominating the global stage with unstoppable momentum.
Including two team events—the Asia Team Championships and the Uber Cup (World Women's Team Championships)—she has stood on the top of the podium in every tournament she has entered this year, with the sole exception of the All England Open, where she took home the silver medal.
Most recently, she conquered both the 2026 BWF World Tour Super 750 Singapore Open and the Super 1000 Indonesia Open.
Despite a grueling schedule of back-to-back tournaments over two weeks, she continued to deliver golden smashes, and the prize money from her victory at the Indonesia Open allowed her to cross the unprecedented $3 million threshold.
An previously set a new record last season alone by raking in $1 million (1.525 billion won) in prize money.
After winning 11 tournaments last season to tie the record for the most titles in a single season, An surpassed the $1 million mark in annual prize money, which also stands as the highest single-season prize money record for any badminton player in history.
(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.